Fact Sheet

Size/Location: 82.68 acres on the east side of Interstate 95 at Exit 8 and U.S. 278

Developer: Ecological Investments, LLC, Butterfly Kingdom and
Ecological Education Center, Inc., a nonprofit corporation

Architects: Barry Taylor, Dale Strecker, FWA Group, Hilton Head Island

Construction Company: Rick Ott, M. B. Kahn, Inc., Columbia, SC

Civil Engineer: Connor & Associates, Bluffton

Cost of Basic Project: $24 million for Main Building, plus $12 million for grounds and gardens

Projected Opening: Spring 2003

Visitors Expected: 700,000 annually for Butterfly Conservatory (33% residents, 67% tourists)
475,000 annually for IMAX 3D Theater

Butterfly Conservatory and Learning Center: Beautiful 75-foot-tall glass greenhouse shaped like a butterfly housing exotic plants and more than 120 species of butterflies in a 13,000-square-foot conservatory that incorporates butterfly, moth, and insect displays.

Also includes 1,200 square feet of laboratory and research space and 3,500 square feet for a learning center, a museum with more than 100,000 mounted insect specimens, a live insect zoo, nocturnal live moth exhibit, and an 80-seat multimedia theater.

3D IMAX Theater: 400-seat IMAX 3-D Theater with a giant, 70-foot-high screen and Dolby sound playing hourly nature, adventure, and educational movies in 3-D. The entire building, including IMAX and Conservatory, is over 83,000 square feet in area.

Botanical Gardens: Walking paths though 15 acres of exterior gardens featuring colorful, exotic flowers and plants from five continents, along with fountains, educational gardens, reflecting pools, lakes, picnic areas and playgrounds

Additional Planned Attractions: Water and Surf Park with waterslides, wave pool, and similar fun. State-of-the-art Golf Driving Range and outside mini-golf courses. Indoor Roller Rink for roller skating, hockey, and roller dancing. Two hotels, two theme restaurants, boutique retail village

Economic: Basic project will generate 120 jobs (75 full-time and 45 part-time employees). Total attraction employment will approach 700 jobs.

Benefits: SC taxes from basic project expected to generate $4 million per year for local governments, and considerably more for South Carolina. Jobs will generate about twice that in increased revenue for local economy.

Educational Opportunities (Butterfly Kingdom): University-level lepidopterists, entomologists and botanists will be on staff in a scientific laboratory that will attract world-class researchers and graduate students. Butterfly Kingdom is affiliated with Clemson University, the University of Florida, the University of Georgia and Michigan State University, and the University of South Carolina.

Professional staff and trained volunteers from the Learning Center will be available for regular visits from area school classes for interpretative nature walks to teach students about insects and ecology and to deliver caterpillars and butterflies for raise-and-release programs.

Students visiting the site will be treated to live insect zoo and an extensive insect museum with a huge donated collection of archival butterflies and insects, teaching videos, computer software and an interactive internet site.

Trained experts will also visit area schools regularly to help teachers supplement science education classes.

Garden club enthusiasts will receive special attention and may develop demonstration plots with assistance from staff botanists and horticulturists. The staff will offer regular lectures and demonstrations, and awards and shows will be scheduled throughout the year.